Lightning Strikes
by axeladamgold
Summary: Headcanon I had that Nico is scared of lightning and struggles after his three days in the infirmary. Cute fluff fic between him and Will and also tiny bits of Percabeth. I don't own PJO but if I did this would be canon! Rated T for rare swearing and fluff. Hope you enjoy!


Sorry guys I haven't posted in a while, but I'm back! I'll hopefully maybe get back to Rise Again soon but this ought to hold you off. Anyway this'll be a cute little one shot based of a headcanon I had between Nico di Angelo and Will Solace (AKA Solangelo (AKA OTP!) It takes place a week or two after the three days in the infirmary.

Hope you enjoy, and love you guys!

_.

It was the end of an extremely hot August in Camp Halfblood. After nearly a half month of reparations the damages of the Earth mother were finally complete. The onagers from the Romans siege of the camp were disposed and life was returning to normal, or as normal as demigods could live.

Nico was taking some free time to recuperate his cabin, relishing the isolation it provided. After the hot close quarters of the infirmary, there was nothing better than a few solitary hours in the chill of the Hades cabin. He had always been more than comfortable on his own, but ever since he returned with the Athena Parthenos he had little time by himself. Rare moments like these were often interrupted by his new friendship found in Jason, constant demand from Percy for a sparring partner, or rather the obnoxious yet endearing attempts from Will at friendship.

Oh, that son of Apollo. While Nico enjoyed his company in small amounts, his overall enthusiasm and energy was far too much for his own conservative style. Nico had known him for about a month before fleeing Camp Halfblood after Bianca's death. Then after his triumph at the Battle of Manhattan, he had gotten to know Will better as he aided the wounded afterwards. Prior to traveling to New Rome they had actually been quite close; or rather, as close as Nico would allow anyone to get to him.

Nico sighed and flipped another page in his book. While dyslexic with the best of them, Nico still tried his best to keep a steady reading pattern, determined to overcome it by any means necessary. Unfortunately, the swirling letters told a different story. Eyes exhausted and mind spinning he sat the book down, gazing at the graying sky. They seemed far off but knowing Long Island weather it would be upon them faster than expected. Stretching on his bunk, Nico hardly noticed the knocking at the door.

"It's unlocked." The door pushed open, but Nico still stared out the window.

"Hey Neeks, we're gonna start a volleyball game before the rain kicks in."

Normally he despised the nickname, except for one of two people. Fortunately, this was the more tolerable of the two.

"Jason, don't you know? We don't get bad weather here-"

"Oh yes, I know. Chiron said he's gonna let this one slide to give the strawberries some moisture." The blonde sat next to Nico on the bunk, following his gaze at the darkening clouds.

"Alright I'll join ya in a sec."

Jason stared momentarily at the son of Hades before shivering. "You'd better hurry. You're gonna catch yourself a cold if you stay in here."

"Trust me I've heard enough from Will. Go get set up, in on my way."

Jason confirmed with a grunt before sliding out the door. Nico's gaze fluttered to a flash of light in the distance. With a shudder he followed Jason out, praying that it wouldn't be a thunder storm. Maybe just a long forgotten memory of his mother's end, or just the fact the Zeus actually sucked, thunder had always put him on edge.

The summer heat rolled over Nico like a wave, instantly cloaking him in humidity. As nice as New York was during the winter, it's summers were the opposite. Normally Nico would have already gone to New Rome as the San Francisco weather was far more preferable, but he was still banned from shadow travel for "safety concerns." Will said he was just being cautious but still there seemed to be ulterior motives behind it.

_.

Pushing the thought aside he walked towards the volleyball pit. Jason has already pooled together a fairly large group. As the summer season was coming to a close, attendance was at an all-time high. There were the Stoll twins as well as a few more from Hermes' cabin. Percy was organizing a half dozen Ares kids into pairs while Annabeth attempted to work a few of her siblings into duos. Jason and Will were drawing up some sort of bracket while two or three Apollo kids overlooked. Piper formed the remaining campers into cheering squads, putting several Aphrodite in a cheer squad. In total there seemed to be about twenty to thirty teenagers, all anxious to play. Nico approached the two blondes and gazed down at their design.

"Demigod Play-Offs?"

"We debated, it was either this or Child Volley-"

"Which I still think is an excellent term for this!" Will interjected.

"But it sounds like you're firing children like arrows,"

"Exactly!"

"But that's misleading!"

"So? It's just-"

"Will, I love you, you know I do, but we are not calling it Child Volley." Nico was met with two astounded eyes. "Now what's the plan?"

Jason was the first to recover, "So we're splitting up into pairs, mostly within cabins. However, there are a few exceptions." He smiled and held his hand out to Piper, who rushed to his side.

"So I assume that means you can't be my partner?" Nico nervously chuckled. It was one thing to agree to be in this sort of social environment, but to be forced into a partnership with a complete stranger was unimaginable. A shake from Jason confirmed this and Nico began frantically scanning around for someone, anyone to save him. "Percy are you-?"

"Sorry Neeks, I've got someone already." Nico almost called out for Hazel, before remembering she had left with Frank earlier. He began feeling the effects of anxiety take grip on him, spinning him on his feet in a blur of faces and fear. Lights spiraled inward threatening to topple him until-

"Hey, it's alright. I've got your back." Nico repelled from the hand on his back, turning to see Will standing beside him.

"Oh...Will, yeah um..."

"There's no need to thank me," Will said with a mischievous grin, "now let's go kick ass."

The first few rounds were very uneventful. The games were fought tournament style, with an east and west branch. Luckily enough the power couples were placed in opposite branches, so the final match was sure to be interesting. Nico and Will both were excellent players but it would be interesting to see what a game between them and either Percy or Jason would create.

In the first matches many of the lesser experienced campers fell prey to the prowess of more tactical assaults. Percy had brutal spikes, but without Annabeth's strategy would never ultimately land. Jason often used his flight to reach higher hits that would otherwise be intangible, while Piper managed to catch the ball at just the right angle to keep it in play. Both teams showed excellent teamwork and success, in parody to Nico and Will.

"No, Will we're trying to hit it over the net not into it!"

"Well if you'd stop getting in the way I'd be able to get it properly, Sunshine."

"Don't call me Sunshine!"

"Look out!"

The two bickered so much that a quick hit was sent speaking into Nico's unprotected face. Will rushed to his aid only to find the Italian laughing.

"Oh, they are so gonna pay for that."

And so the battles continued, with their increasing frustration with each other turning into absolute domination of their competitors. With each game lasting shorter time periods as teams either gave up or lost horribly to the three best teams, it wasn't long before the semifinals were upon them. While Percy and Annabeth had no problem winning their match, the East penultimate was much more exciting.

"Nico, watch your left."

"Shut it, Solace."

"Man, their spikes are brutal."

"Well, if you'd stop flirting we might be able to hit some of them!"

"Will hit it,"

"I got it, Neeks."

The duos parried back and forth, each yielding only just enough ground to make their next volley even faster. As uncommunicative and disjointed Nico and Will had been, not one of the opponent's hits could make it past them. The round had reached the climax with both parties backed up as far back as the court would allow, and the ball nothing more than a blur of white when it happened.

"I've got this one." Annabeth dashed forward and bumped a tall pass to Percy. After hitting it over, he smacked her on the ass with a flirtatious smile. In a flash she had turned and lunged at him, pinning him to the ground.

"Are you seriously trying to flirt with me during a battle?!"

"It's just a game, Wise Girl," Percy smirked and pulled her into a kiss, just in time for Nico to spike the ball just past them. The crowd erupted into cheers and flooded the field, but not before Will had a chance to scoop Nico up into a massive bear hug.

"We did it, Neeks!" Nico struggled against it, but was inevitably swept up in the approaching crowd. As wiry as the child of Apollo looked, he was actually quite strong. Soon enough, the onlookers lifted the winners high above, nearly avoiding trampling the kissing campers. An outbreak of chorus exploded, deafening the camp to the approaching storm. Although the two were torn apart by the camp, they remained close enough that they could still hold hands. Nico laughed and looked over at Will, who was intently staring at him. He mouthed something, but the roar of the camp drowned him out.

"Let's head down to the beach! The Hephaestus' kids made a giant fireworks display!"

The jovial crowd surged towards the shoreline, holding the two demigods high above. It had been an age since the camp had had fireworks, as the end of the world usually takes precedence. Nico felt Will squeeze his hand, and felt the pain and stress of the past few weeks fade away. Until another flash filled the sky. The crowd gasped in awe as the storm enveloped Camp Halfblood, encircling but never crossing into the magical boundaries. Lightning began to light up the sky all around, and the booming thunder shook the very camp. As the demigods looked upwards, Nico quickly shimmied his way down and began running. Blasting thunders above echoed in his head, and he clutched his hands to his ears to try and block them out. All but one missed his quick departure as he fled to his cabin to avoid the cacophony. He quickly slammed the door behind him and buried himself beneath the covers. Another blast issued from outside, causing him to shiver in anticipation. In his youth it had always been Bianca to comfort him during a thunderstorm. Now that he was alone, he preferred to wait it out away from the judgement of anyone. Shivering under the sheets, he didn't notice that someone had followed him inside.

"Hey, you doing okay?"

Nico jumped up and turned towards the door. Will stood there with an odd smile on his face, and Nico felt the heat rise to his cheeks. Another boom caused the olive skinned boy to hide himself again.

"I'm gonna take that as a no."

Will slowly walked over and sat next to him on the bed and stared out the window at the far off clouds. Even though the boundaries kept the storm at bay, there were still enough clouds to encompass the entirety of the sky with darkness. As much as Will wanted to ask what scared Nico off, he knew that pushing anything with Nico would just lead him to shut down. With a sigh, Will wrapped an arm around Nico, wishing there was a way to get him to talk without pressuring him.

To his surprise, the lump underneath the blankets moved into him, snuggling into his warmth. Will gently slipped the blanket off of Nico's face and looked into his eyes. Beyond the fear and terror that fixated beyond the window, Will could see the cool fire underneath. Nico's head slipped onto Will's shoulder, and he rested his own on top. Both boys gazed out the window as the first raindrops began to fall.

_.

Hoped you guys enjoyed this as much as I did! I really hope to do some more with Solangelo, but I might make it a little sultrier XD

Thanks for reading and love y'all!

-A


End file.
